We can and will become strong again!

[B][I]First part of a series[/I][/B]

The other night there was a thunderstorm with lightning and rain. When a loud burst of thunder suddenly roared through the house, my 7-year-old daughter came running into the room crying and terribly frightened. I quickly held her tight in my arms and assured her there was no danger. Later that evening I sat thinking about us in the CNMI. Aren’t we also frightened at this time and need someone to assure us that the dangers we are facing can be overcome?

Daily we see our beloved islands besieged with problems such as failing businesses, our government’s inability to provide satisfactory basic utility services, the departure of our relatives and neighbors to seek a better life elsewhere, inadequate medical services, a depressing drop in tourism, the continuing high rate of indigenous unskilled workers, increasing food stamp recipients, the loss of the tax-generating garment industry, and other problems. All of these accompanied by a change in our culture and beliefs. As a result we feel confused and lost.

All of the above problems were caused by people, not by natural catastrophes such as earthquakes, tsunami, typhoons or even war, which is a man-made form of destruction. Therefore, because people caused them, people must resolve them. But herein lies the difficulty. We know the problems and we know the solutions. But we lack the will and determination to correct them! We refuse to make the sacrifice and discipline needed to correct them!

Perhaps sounding like a mister know-it-all, I am going to stick my neck out and propose several steps to recovery. Therefore in the next few articles, I will discuss various avenues that we should approach if we are to solve the problems facing us. We may or may not agree on the methods, but that is okay. If I can make us stand up and insist on improvement, I will have done my job! I want to be our gadfly. Your ideas may be better than mine. But if I can inspire hope and motivation, we will regain control of our destiny and we will overcome! As I mentioned in the first paragraph, we are frightened and have lost our direction.

[I]The first suggestion to getting back on track is to turn to the person we acknowledge as our leader. Unless the man we elected as our leader begins to assure us that all will be right, like I did to my daughter, we will not improve and continue to flee and be frightened. Therefore I am making the following plea to our Governor:

“Governor Fitial, please talk to us directly. Explain clearly to us what you feel is wrong and why. What actions did we do in the past to get us into this predicament? Show us by your leadership that you are feeling the same pain and frustration that we are. Explain why it is so difficult to correct the problems at CUC and at the CPA. Assure us many times over that we are in firm hands. Assure us that you have matters well under control.

“Governor, reach out to us in our moment of fear and despair. You are our most important spokesman. Let us feel your compassion. We need to be comforted at this time of need and despair. If you do not, why did we elect you?

“And please, sir, do not do it through your press media spokesman. We want to see you and hear you say the words directly to us. We want to see your face and hear your words. Come and walk among us. Hold open discussions and invite all of us to hear you. Listen to our fears directly. Don’t tell us your advisors say “so and so.” They do not know any better than you. As former President Harry Truman used to say: ‘The buck stops here!’

“One strong suggestion is that you appear on television weekly and talk to us for at least 30 minutes. Explain how you see the current situation; how you think we can come together and overcome our problems. Also explain why you feel so strongly against what the U.S. is supposedly doing to us because of the enactment of the federalization bill. Do you actually believe it is trying to destroy us or subjugate us? We need to hear these things from you directly.

“I also strongly urge you not to fight with our only benefactor, the United States. All your talk about the GAO report not being accurate and federalization will destroy us, I am sorry but I don’t agree. Look at how prosperous Guam is. Yet it is more under the control of the U.S. than we are. The United States needs us. Unfortunately at this stage they don’t really know how to handle us. That is all the more reason we should be close to them and help them to understand us better.

“You and your ‘advisers’ are frightening us by insisting that by 2014 or any other date, we will be totally devastated from this action by the United States. Having been in business for over 45 years, I have learned that plans, whether they are business, personal or government plans, are constantly in a state of flux and must be adapted to changes. At most, plans have only a year of validity. I have rarely seen any plan being carried out over a longer period of time, no matter how well structured. Too many factors keep changing and the plans must adapt to them.

“Let us concern ourselves with implementing solid short-range plans in concert with the United States. Let us work with them. They too need to have us succeed. We will get only what we negotiate. We need to compromise, not be confrontational.

“Another strong suggestion is that you and the Lt. Governor make up. It is sad to hear that you and he are not speaking to one another. He is in the same building but you both are miles apart. It is chilling to know that the two most important and powerful men leading us are not on speaking terms. To whom do we turn to in need? To whom do we pledge our loyalty? To whom do the various agencies report? Are your personal feelings greater than the people that depend on you both?

“A third suggestion is that your administration work closer with the House and Senate. They too need assurance that you are there to protect us. I also strongly urge the House and Senate to work closer with you and your staff. Please talk and talk until you reach a unanimous plan of action. Unless we become unified in our course of action, we will never move ahead. Why aren’t we all speaking in a unified voice during these trying moments? ‘A house divided against itself cannot stand.’ Abraham Lincoln said that a long time ago.

“Governor, unless you take the lead in assuring us, we will remain confused and continue to flee the islands. You must also inspire us so that we can achieve ‘better times.’ Leadership and guidance come from the top!”[/I]

As Charles Dickens wrote: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of enlightment, it was the age of foolishness.” It remains to be seen which it will be. I pause until next week when I will discuss other steps we must take to overcome our problems.